L’Una & L’Altra in Rome

March 30, 2019April 14, 2024 | Design & Culture by Ed

Why did I love my last trip to Rome so much? I accidentally, but very luckily, discovered Luna & L’Altra boutique, that was about to close in the couple of days – after 30 years of existence. The amazingly charismatic and inspiring owner, Biba Libera (photographed above), first introduced Japanese designers to Italy – think Yohji Yamamoto, Comme Des Garçons, Issey Miyake – and throughout the years gathered a brilliant collection of Maison Martin Margiela (even the super rare, artinasal pieces, like the gloves top or the tape bag). She even borrowed some of the pieces to Musee Galliera in Paris, which did the designer’s retrospective not a long time ago. Some of the items from her archives were available to buy. Meanwhile, she chatted with anyone who was as in awe with her and her store as me. It’s so sad to hear that places like this close due to the fashion industry’s pace… but as she said, she was ready for this step. And she’s here for a new adventure! Really hope to meet her soon.

All photos by Edward Kanarecki.

Holly Golightly

October 20, 2018October 18, 2018 | Design & Culture by Ed

Holly Golightly is a fashion retailer located in the heart of Copenhagen. This concepts tore features ready-to-wear from brands like Lemaire, Rosie Assoulin, Saks Potts, Dries Van Noten, The Vampire’s Wife and other labels, as well as a selection of leather goods, cosmetics (the impressive Buly 1803 shop-in-shop), fine jewellery and a finely curated selection of vintage items. The store also houses the dutch furniture brand Piet Hein Eek. The owner, Barbara Maj Husted Werner, strongly believes in personal and timeless style and aims to inspire her customers with a coalition between high-end luxury goods and hand-picked items from all around the world. The fashion retail scene in Copenhagen is truly exciting, and stores like Holly Golightly are clear reasons why. I mean, just take a look how fantastic this space is!

Borgergade 17B / Copenhagen

All photos by Edward Kanarecki.

Borchardt

April 29, 2016April 28, 2016 | Design & Culture by Ed

Berlin can amaze you with the best Vietnamese cuisine – but it can also make you fall in love with German’s national pride. Wiener Schitzel, hello! I’ve never been a fan of this specialty, however the one I ate at Borchardt changed my view on this usually unattractive way of meat serving. The Borchardt looks back on a 150 year long history, being one of the oldest restaurants of the German capital. In the past, it supplied the Kaiser in the Wilhelmine era, went on to survive the Second World War and the city’s division by the Berlin Wall – so there is no possible way that this place could have dissapointed. Although you might think that Bochardt smells with antique, it surprisingly looks quite modern thanks to perfect restoration, while the marble pillars and an original Byzantine-style enthrone give this one-of-a-kind spot a spirit which you won’t find anywhere else in Berlin.

Franzosische Straße 47 / Berlin

Mood Scent Bar

April 20, 2016April 20, 2016 | Design & Culture by Ed

Warsaw is underrated by many and I don’t get why. New places to visit appear constantly, without a moment of pause; people here are so open for new ideas and opportunities. After my last, very short trip to Poland’s capital, I’m obsessed with Mood Scent Bar. But don’t get it wrong – the name of this spot might deceive you to think it’s a place to eat. However, it’s Warsaw’s coolest multibrand of niche perfumes from around the world. In fact, they have two boutiques – one is a step from Vitkac, this huge luxury department store, and the second on Tamka street. But my heart belongs to the first one, which is much smaller and much chicer, with dove-grey walls, vintage lamps and pretty, floral arrangements.

The selection here is mind-blowing, even though you might have never heard of any of the labels they sell here. As the lady mused on the topic of Unum’s Opus_1144, a fragrance, which has its brutalist, concrete “bottle” made in collaboration with Rick Owens, I tried out the literally addictive scent of Blamage by Nasomatto. Although I’m not a fan of heavy, smokey perfumes, Boccanera (in Italian translated as “dark lips”) by Alessandro Gualtieri’s Orto Parisi made me fall in love with its slightly dramatic, oriental twist. Classic-reconstructing Humiecki & Graff, electrifying Room 1015 and eccentric A Lab on Fire, to mention a few, are available here. And for those who don’t feel like experimenting with their noses (and minds!), Mood Scent Bar has a wide variety of well-known Comme Des Garçons fragrances. Indeed, this place is a synonym of nutritious feast for the senses!

Ul. Bracka 3 / Warsaw

Fondazione Prada

October 17, 2015January 7, 2020 | Design & Culture by Ed

“Haunted Tower”

Fondazione Prada is Milan’s most exciting place, where curated art meets architecture and its past. The creator of Fondazione Prada is, as the name might suggest, Miuccia Prada, whose love to art is as strong as to fashion. This is not an average, contemporary art museum – Fondazione fuses visual appreciation with intellectual pleasure – everything that happens here, from silent dance performances to temporary exhibitions, feels bonded together. The “Haunted House” covered with gold and the whole Fondazione Prada site is part of a former distillery complex dating back to the 1910s.

Without transforming the original volumes, the architecture project has preserved and enhanced the building by reinforcing the structure and gilding its external surface. As stated by Rem Koolhaas, the architect behind the museum, “Fondazione is not a preservation project and not a new architecture. Two conditions that are usually kept separate here confront each other in a state of permanent interaction–offering an ensemble of fragments that will not congeal into a single image, or allow any part to dominate the others. New, old, horizontal, vertical, wide, narrow, white, black, open, enclosed–all these contrasts establish the range of oppositions that define the new Fondazione. By introducing so many spatial variables, the complexity of the architecture will promote an unstable, open programming, where art and architecture will benefit from each other’s challenges”. Permanently, Fondazione Prada exhibits Louis Bourgeois‘s metaphysical installations, Robert Gober‘s eerie and surreal artworks. As part of the temporary exhibition, it’s essential to see Damien Hirst‘s “Trittico“, which literally presents a gynecologist chair immersed in a huge, fish-filled aquarium.

After few hours of discovering and learning about Fondazione Prada’s treasures, it’s a great idea to have cup of coffee at Bar Luce, which was designed by Wes Anderson, the famous director of “The Grand Budapest Hotel” – the pastel green wallpapers and delicious, marmalade cupcakes certainly give the caffè a status of the best museum cafeteria in the world. If you are planning a visit to Milan, then don’t even try to miss Fondazione Prada on your go-to list!

Via Largo Isarco 2 / Milan